Ancient Greece: Minoans & Mycenae and the Greek City-States

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GeographyThe small area that Greece occupies, consists of mountainous peninsulas and many islands. The small plains and river valleys are surrounded by high mountains.The mountains separated Greeks from one another, which caused the formation of many different communities. The surrounding sea allowed the Greeks to make contact with the outside world.Works Cited"MYCENAEAN AGE (600 - 1100 BC)." Ancient Greece. Web. 10 Oct. 2014.by: Jose AriasAncient Greece: Minoans, Mycenae, and the Greek City-StatesThe Minoan Civilization was established on the island of Crete.Men wore loincloths and kilts. Women wore robes that had short sleeves and skirts.They first used Cretan Hieroglyphs and later they started to use Linear A.The majority of the surviving art is pottery and frescoes. They used patterns of spirals and curves, animals, and flowers to decorate their potteryThe Minoans were polytheistic, and goddesses are more likely to be found on art.The Minoans worshiped an Earth goddess, which is symbolized by a bull or a snake.The Minoans used their great seafarer skills for trading amongst other civilizations.They traded olive oil,scented fragrances, metalwork, pottery, and cloth.They imported wood, metal, and ivory.The Minoan writing, Linear A, led to a creation of a different form of writing, Linear B. Aristocrats became more and more powerful during the Bronze Age (2600-1150 BCE).Clay tablets show that there was a king and a centralized coordination of commerce.The name "Minoan" comes from King Minos.Men and women were somewhat equal.Kings Coordinators of Commerce Commoners SlavesThe government was a hierarchy in which "The Wanax" was at the top. "The Wanax" is their word for king.Pottery was still very important to their culture. They also made statuettes and designed armor and shields.Linear B helped create many other forms of writing. Their successful government and economic wealth could have provided an example for other developing civilizations.Two groups of workers, ones that worked for the king and ones that had their own businessTextile, wool, fiber, and flax were important industries.They traded with countries from the Mediterranean and Europe. The Mycenae created a new form of writing, Linear B. It was an improved form of Linear A.The Mycenae were also polytheistic and also believed in the same Earth goddess.They built palaces, citadels, bridges, tombs, and residences."Beehive tombs" circular tombs with a high roof.Athens had a democratic government, but it failed and they went back under the rule of a man. Sparta had an oligarchy government in which a group of retired warriors ruled.Many other city-states were ruled by a king.Citizens (men) had rights, but the rights came with responsibilities.The community shared common goals.Helots- captured slaves.Spartan boys were taken at age 7 to learn military discipline. Men (even if they had wives) lived in barracks. Women had to stay fit in order to bear and raise her children.Wealthy Athenian boys were put under the care of a pedagogue at age 7. The boy was allowed to learn reading, writing, arithmetic, physical education, and musicSpielvogel, Jackson. "The First Greek Civilizations." World History. Columbus: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, 2003. Print.PoliticalSocialCulturalReligionTechnologyEconomicImpactKing Local Chiefs Lawagetas Commoners(head of army)The Palace at Knossos- built on a hill, multiple stories high, and had multiple roomsMinoan Art & WritingMycenaean Art & WritingThe Mycenaean Civilization was located southwest of Athens.Greek city-states include Sparta and AthensEach city-state believed that there was at least two gods/goddesses watching over them.The Greek city-states were all polytheistic. They believed in the gods/goddesses from Greek MythologyAthenians built thousands of palaces and statues.They studied science, philosophy, and historyThe city-states no longer used Linear B, instead they used the Phoenician alphabet in order to create their own alphabet.The Athenians traded honey, olive oil, silver, and painted potteryThe Spartans used their military force to conquer neighboring lands and also farmed.We still use the Greek alphabet for math and science purposes.The Athenians provided the thought of a democratic government